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Welsh composer, pianist, playwright and actor.
Born January 15, 1893 in Cardiff, Wales, UK.
Died March 6, 1951 (age of 58) in Aldwych, London, England, UK.
Trained at the Magdalen College Choir School on a soprano scholarship, he soon began writing songs under the name Ivor Novello. In his overall career, Novello would write over 250 songs. After serving in the Royal Naval Air Service during WWI and surviving two crash landings, he composed the patriotic World War I standard Keep the Home Fires Burning.
Novello then switched to pursue acting. The actor's film peak occurred headlining two ofAlfred Hitchcock's early suspense thrillers, serving as the put-upon protagonist in both the silent classic The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927) and the lesser-received Downhill (1927). Novello was hugely popular in his time (though virtually unknown in America), and has had a lasting influence on film, theater and especially music.